A Ruined Evening
by oceanicsix
Summary: Ron has sufficiently ruined the Yule Ball for Hermione and Draco intends to put the icing on the miserable cake...or does he? Dramione
1. Chapter 1

**A Ruined Evening**

**Summary: Ron has sufficiently ruined the Yule Ball for Hermione, and Draco intends to put the icing on the miserable cake...or does he?**

**Disclaimer: I am definitely not J.K. Rowling, merely a crazy fan. **

"_Don't call him Vicky!_"

A pair of stormy gray eyes follow Hermione's angry footsteps out of the Great Hall. Ah, finally someone is as _miserable_ as Draco. Straightening his tie and picking up his discarded shoes, he trudges after her to see what all of the fuss is about. He doesn't bother telling Pansy, she'll be a while getting the drinks anyway, the stupid girl.

He hisses through his teeth and stop in his tracks when he hears her angry voice again, quirking an amused brow upon realizing she's talking to herself. "That..complete..._arse!_" He watches in amusement as she kicks the wall in frustration, cursing and stumbling back a few feet.

To the utter surprise of both of them, a pair of pale, slender arms reach out to catch her before she can fall, holding her up awkwardly by the armpits. Hermione's head whips around so quickly, a bit of her carefully arranged hairstyle falls down. "Malfoy? What the-...what are you doing here?" She huffs and quickly straightens up, tucking the loose strands of hair behind her ear.

Wrinkling his nose in disgust, Draco makes an obvious point of brushing his hands off on his robes and looking her over. "As far as I know, Granger, this is a _public _corridor." His lips curl into a terrible sneer, but somehow his gaze lacks its usual venom, even as he ventures to insult her further. "You should be grateful, I saved you from snapping your neck. You wouldn't even have that _bush_ on your head to brace the fall, with that new hairstyle you've adapted."

She turns to hide her sudden tears, clutching her handbag close to her chest with trembling hands. "M-Malfoy, please...I...I don't need this right now." He glances around the corridor nervously, stepping closer to her upon finding it deserted.

"What..what are you doing?" His voice cracks a bit. He hadn't been expecting this. He'd wanted her to scream at him, to pull out her wand and threaten him, not _cry_. With another quick glance around the corridor, he ducks into an empty classroom and closes his long fingers over her wrist, pulling her in as well. He leaves the door open a crack, still able to faintly hear the music from the Great Hall, starting a bit as he turns to find her glaring at him.

"What am I doing? What are _you_ doing?" She wipes her eyes hastily and takes a step toward him, raising a hand as if to smack him.

"I...I just..." He coughs awkwardly and takes a step toward her as well. The Weird Sisters announce that there are only three songs left, and kick off with a slow song. "D'you want to dance?" His lips twitch into the vague form of a genuine smile, but it quickly falters, as though he's forgotten how.

Without either of them thinking about it, they step up to each other and start to sway. At first they aren't even touching, they both seem too disgusted. With a tiny little laugh, Draco meets her gaze and rests his hands on her waist, feeling a strange tingling in his fingers. Hermione's arms automatically wrap around his neck, her fingers curling into his hair at the base of his neck, though she refuses even to look at him.

"Erm, I'm...sorry about...wh-what I said about...y'know, your hair." He bites his lip and looks away, not catching the slightly amused look Hermione gives him.

"Yeah, n-no. It's...It's alright." She blushes a bit and bumps her forehead almost affectionately against his chin. "Just don't...don't do it again."

"Right, yeah...okay." Draco wraps his arms a bit tighter around her waist, pressing his cheek to hers and whispering nervously in her ear, "You do look...l-lovely tonight, you know. Even for a Mu-...Gryffindor." He pulls back with another twitching smile, this one lasting a bit longer.

Hermione's brow furrows and she just stares at him for a few moments, not even remotely sure how to react. Once the silence has reached the point he can no longer bear it, Draco leans in a bit, lips hovering a few inches from hers. "Th-...the song's over."

The moment is over. Whatever they had shared for those few minutes...it couldn't happen again. She knew that, and he certainly knew it as well. Of course, that didn't stop him from ghosting his lips across hers on his way out of the room.

~Fin~

**Just a quick fic I did as a twitter request, read and review! It wasn't beta'd or anything, but...well, I hope it doesn't suck. As always, try to be nice. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A Ruined Evening**

**Ch 2! Bumping the rating up to T, just to be safe. Ron and Hermione have been engaged for a month, and all is NOT well. Guess who decides to show up?**

**Disclaimer: Yeah, still not J.K. Rowling. **

He found out about the engagement a month ago. Not that it bothered him or anything but..._Weasley_? Draco couldn't quite understand why, but the idea of addressing Granger as Hermione _Weasley_ just didn't sit right on his tongue. And he will have to address her as such, there's no getting around that. They'll inevitably have to work together again, as the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement seems to think they make a great pair.

He steps into their office, stopping short when he hears a sort of strangled sobbing noise coming from under Hermione's desk. "Th-that...c-complete..._arse!_"

_Well, this certainly feels familiar_. He only realizes that he's said it out loud when he hears something bang against the bottom of the desk and a surprisingly harsh, "_Fuck!_" With a startled little chuckle, Draco tiptoes around behind Hermione's desk, squatting down to find her curled in a ball with a box of tissues, clutching her head and glaring at him. "Couldn't you have KNOCKED?" She sniffs a bit and gathers up a few tissues, trying and failing to look intimidating.

Sighing a bit, Draco brushes some tissues aside and crawls under the desk with her, hunched over awkwardly. "Alright, spit it out. What has the Weasel done this time, Gr-Hermione?" He searches around for a clean tissue and hands it to her, actually smiling a little bit.

"He..he.." She takes a deep, steadying breath before continuing, "H-he called off the engagement! He st-started seeing Lavender again!" She buries her face in her hands, sobbing louder than before. Squinting, Draco tries to wipe the look of disgust from his face at the name.

"Lavender? You can't be serious..._Lavender_?" She spreads her fingers a bit and peeks at him through the gap, seemingly comforted by the incredulous look on his face. Encouraged by her tiny smile, he leans forward and pries her hands from her face, gently wiping her tears with his thumb. "Actually, you know what? I think this calls for celebration. You should thank the idiot, he's just saved you a lifetime of regret." He crawls out from under the desk, offering her a hand which she hesitantly takes.

He flicks his wand to shut the door, turning on the tiny radio on Hermione's desk. "Let's dance, Granger." She gives him a look frighteningly similar to the one she gave in their Fourth Year, but her arms instantly reach up to wrap loosely around his neck. The years have made Draco bold, and he doesn't hesitate to rest his hands on her lower back, pulling her flush against him and pressing his cheek to hers.

"This feels familiar doesn't it, Hermione?" He's whispering so softly, it's a wonder that she can actually hear him. "It feels like...the Yule Ball all over again. It seems I'll always be here to catch you when the ginger brat drops you."

She sniffs again and curls her fingers in his hair, her voice shaking a bit. "Th-this is only the second time. Your theory has yet to be reliably tested."

He rolls his eyes a bit and kisses her ear, desperate to say what he needs to this time before the song ends. "Well, I'm convinced...regardless, don't you think it's time to give up on Weasley and turn to someone more...well, _more_?" She pulls back a bit to look at him, narrowing her eyes skeptically. "I know, I know, you still don't think you can trust me. But...I'm asking you to take a chance, Hermione." His voice is pleading now, fingers curling desperately against her back and pulling her closer. "Just give me a chance, let me...let me take you out. Y'know...on a date."

The song starts to come to a close, and Hermione instantly starts to pull away from him, leaning against her desk. She shakes her head slowly, hugging herself and staring at the floor. "I can't. I love him, Draco."

Without pausing for even a second to think about it, he cups her cheeks in his hands and crushes his lips to hers, pressing her back against the desk. The kiss isn't _nearly_ long enough, but it gets his point across. He takes a step back to find her staring dazedly at him, cheeks flushed and eyes shining, lips still parted slightly. "You can convince everyone around you that you're in love with him, and you may even have_ yourself_ convinced. But he'll never make you feel like _that. _Not like I can." He inclines his head sarcastically to her, turning on his heel and slipping out of the office.

She crosses her arms and watches him go without a word, waiting until he's out of sight to reach up and press her fingers to her tingling lips.

**End of Chapter 2! Goodness, aren't I such a tease? Don't worry, there will be at least one more chapter. Still unbeta'd, just leave any critiques a review, but try to be nice! **


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